arms, coat of: United Kingdom sovereign

The chief components of armorial bearings as indicated on the Royal Arms of the United Kingdom as used in England

The royal cipher (ER) is not a part of the arms proper but identifies them as representing Queen Elizabeth II. The Roman numeral II is unnecessary here, as the arms of Elizabeth I were different, apart from those of England. The shield shows England (in heraldic terms gules three leopards or) quartered with Scotland (or a lion rampant within a double tressure flory counterflory gules) and Ireland (azure a harp or stringed argent). This is the quartering in use since the accession of Queen Victoria in 1837. The shield is encircled by the garter of the Order of the Garter bearing the motto of the order, “Honi soit qui mal y pense” (“Evil to him who evil thinks”). The dexter supporter, a royally crowned gold lion guardant, and the sinister supporter, a silver unicorn with gold horn, hooves, mane, and tufts and a gold coronet collar and chain, represent England and Scotland, respectively. Atop the full-faced helm of a sovereign with its ermine and gold mantling, or lambrequin, is the royal crown surmounted by the royal crest, a lion statant guardant crowned with the royal crown. The motto “Dieu et mon droit” (“God and my right”), first used by Richard I, appears on the scroll below. The ground beneath the full achievement, called the compartment, is strewn with the floral and plant badges of England (rose), Scotland (thistle), Ireland (shamrock), and Wales (leek).